Jerk Chicken with Peas and Rice

Jerk chicken with rice and peas is delicious. Juicy, spicy chicken, this recipe is adapted from one by Levi Roots.

Top tip! Be sure to wear rubber gloves when chopping a Scotch bonnet chilli as they are hot!

Serve the chicken with rice and peas. If you're brave you can of course add another chilli if you wish. You could cook this on the BBQ, but in the UK now is not the time!

So, get yourself a nice grill pan that can go into the oven. If not, you'll have to transfer the chicken to a shallow baking dish to continue cooking.

Scotch Bonnet chillies come in a variety of colours - if you're in the UK you can buy these from Tesco, Asda or Sainsbury's; otherwise any good supermarket will sell them.

Serve with a mixture of long grain and wild rice with black-eyed peas - all I did was to cook some rice and stir in some heated black-eyed peas from a tin; okay not quite the proper thing but still good!

jamaican jerk chicken, rice and peas, levi roots

main, chicken

Jamaican

Yield: 2-4

Author: Jan Bennett

Jerk Chicken with Rice and Peas

Adapted from a recipe by Levi Roots.

Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 40 Mininactive time: 3 HourTotal time: 3 H & 50 M

Ingredients

• 6 to 8 chicken thighs bone-in and with skin - excess removed
• juice of 1/2 a lemon
• a lime - quartered for garnish

For the dry seasoning ingredients

• 1 teaspoon all-purpose seasoning (Dunn's River) available from Tesco
• 1 teaspoon ground allspice
• a pinch of each of the following: marjoram, oregano, thyme, rosemary, basil and tarragon
• pinch of salt
• a few twists of black pepper

For the marinade

• 1 Scotch bonnet chilli - deseeded and chopped
• 2 spring onions - chopped
• 1 large onion - chopped
• 1 tablespoon ground allspice
• 1-inch piece fresh root ginger- peeled and finely chopped
• 2 fat garlic cloves - crushed
• 1/2 tablespoon dried marjoram
• 1/2 tablespoon dried oregano
• 1/2 tablespoon dried basil
• 1/2 tablespoon dried tarragon
• 2 tablespoons of all-purpose seasoning (Dunn's River) available from Tesco
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• a small handful of fresh coriander leaves - chopped
• a good pinch of salt - say a teaspoon
• a good amount of freshly ground black pepper
• 100 ml tomato ketchup
• a tiny amount of vegetable oil - say half a tablespoon

Instructions

Pre-heat your oven to 200C/400F or gas 6

1. Mix together the dry seasoning ingredients and set them aside.
2. Put the chicken into a non-metallic bowl and then sprinkle over the lemon juice. Rub the chicken with the dry seasoning.
3. In another bowl mix together the marinade ingredients. Now pour the marinade mixture over the chicken, turning it to coat it well.
4. Cover with cling film and refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
5. Remove the chicken from the fridge half an hour before you're ready to cook. Remove the chicken from the marinade - but don't throw it away.
6. Heat up a non-stick grill pan till it's really nice and hot.
7. Throw in the chicken pieces skin side down. Cook for 10 minutes then turn it over. Cook for another 10 minutes. You can baste the chicken with a little of the remaining marinade if you wish. Now transfer the pan to your preheated oven to finish cooking for about 20 minutes.
8. **If you're cooking this on a BBQ you can just continue to cook until the chicken is cooked through.
9. However, you cook this make sure the juices run clear when you push a knife into the centre of the chicken.
10. Serve with rice and black-eyed peas - all I did was cook some rice and stir in some heated black-eyed peas from a tin. Not the quite the proper thing, but still good!

Did you make this recipe?

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